The working culture has drastically changed for both employees and employers. Today's employees expect more from their employers than just a paycheck and traditional perks. At the same time, employers expect loyalty and greater productivity from employees.
"84% of employers acknowledge the importance of delivering a positive employee experience, yet only 9% believe they are ready to address this issue."
Owing to these facts, lies some of the critical secrets to wooing your employees and winning their hearts while promoting a healthy, financially resilient, and inclusive work environment.
Bringing their authentic self to work and be respected, supported, and inspired by their leaders and managers is now the new norm. The pandemic has been hard on every one of us. The last thing employees want on their worry list is stress at work.
As workers gain an edge in the opportunistic hunt for a company with a contemporary culture and benefits package, employers compete to win and retain exceptional talent.
Here are three core secrets to help you win the hearts and minds of your existing employees.
Keep the intrinsic and extrinsic motivators in check
Most employers might think that a “good enough” paycheck and the traditional work perks are plenty to fill in the motivation gap for employees. However, a study by McKinsey, proves that the intrinsic factors of motivation at work are equally crucial for winning employees. Coming to work with purpose helps employees to feel part of a greater mission and allows them to perform their work with greater significance, zeal, and dedication.
Intrinsic motivators such as autonomy, mastery, and purpose let employees feel trusted, supported, and valued at work. Autonomy as a motivator allows employees to feel self-directed and in greater charge of their work. Mastering a job or task is a process of gradual development that makes employees feel they are consistently bettering themselves, which nurtures skill, confidence, and satisfaction.
Employees who are trusted with projects and are given the freedom to manage the project from the end-to-end, as well as offer respect and support to colleagues, are more likely to succeed. Hence, employers who prioritize the internal motivation levels of employees tend to win talent over for longer periods of time building trust, loyalty and regard among employees.
Meanwhile, the more evident motivators like handsome salaries, monetary incentives, retirement plans, and team-building activities also give employees the external satisfaction they are looking for at work. It helps them to make wise financial decisions. Although external motivation factors are proven to be short-lived, they do help employees build relationships with employers.
Thus, employers can inculcate a culture of trust, support, and encouragement for employees while caring for their intrinsic and extrinsic motivational needs.
Revamp your Wellness Packages
While companies are doing their utmost to empower employees in the aftermath of the pandemic, some employers still miss out on devising extensive wellness packages. The promise of a competitive paycheck coupled with a 401(k) plan and health and dental insurance are undoubtedly some of the most attractive work perks and extrinsic motivations. But there's a lot that employers can still offer to their employees while keeping their costs minimal.
The rise in demand for early access to earnings shows a sudden shift in how employees now want to get paid. Considering how more than half of the US workforce is living paycheck to paycheck, it makes sense to have daily access to earnings to cover unexpected financial challenges that cannot wait. This new need gave birth to solutions like Wages on-Demand™ that offer employees the ability to cash out their earnings after each shift as opposed to waiting for payday.
For employers struggling with retaining talent, perks like Wages on-Demand™ offer seamless integration with their current systems to offer this service at zero cost without affecting their cash flow or increasing their workload. It's a win-win for all.
Healthy work culture always wins
Companies that focus on maintaining healthy work cultures are bound to go far. Along with many perspectives and needs that have changed, the definition of healthy work culture has also been revolutionized.
Great organizations communicate with and not at their employees, ensuring honest two-way feedback. The attention to frequency and tone of clear communication has become part of healthy work culture.
Staying clued in with your employees by hearing them out and emphasizing what they're saying lets employees feel seen, heard, and supported.
Along with mutually clear and effective communication, it’s crucial for employers to show gratitude for their employees and make it actionable. Purchasing a box of “Thank You” cards or gift certificates with hand-written or personalized notes are humble yet impactful gestures that keep your work culture healthy.
Healthy work culture is one where every employee feels seen, heard, supported, and respected. It’s where employees are trusted with their assigned work and have their intrinsic and extrinsic needs met by learning from and contributing to those they work with and for.
Have you won your employees already?
The recent Great Resignation wave, coupled with the escalating war on talent, keeps even the best employers on their toes. A few organizations have successfully achieved this balancing act by offering holistic wellness packages alongside a nontoxic work environment while balancing the intrinsic and extrinsic motivations of their employees.
As a result, these companies are adored by their employees. They are reaping the rewards of greater productivity, talent retention, and positive word of mouth from their employees.
It’s high time companies revamp their work practices to survive, retain, and attract employees as work cultures evolve.
So, what are you doing to win your employees?
